In building construction, a newly installed or repaired operating sewage conduit in the building waste or sewer drainage system must frequently be isolated from the sewage service line until the plumbing construction is tested and inspected by subjecting the system to a fluid pressure test to locate any leaks, and certified for compliance with building code requirements. This is especially true in the case of water closet drains. It is common practice within the construction industry to place an outlet end of a newly installed sewage conduit of the building at a juncture near an inlet to a sewage service line. During installation, these two lines are capped and not connected. Where these two lines would otherwise meet, each line is capped off until testing and inspection are complete. As a result of usual construction techniques, the juncture is frequently buried before the tests are performed. After the testing and inspection are complete, the connection site is re-excavated, the caps removed, and a secure connection of the two lines is made. The difficulty of making such tests is often aggravated by the fact that at another end of the system a water closet is often installed in a poured, permanent floor, such as concrete. Once the water closet fitting and drain have been installed and allowed to set, it is generally either exceedingly difficult or impossible to access the drain fitting. Thus a vexing question has been posed by the need to seal the drain system to accommodate testing.
Various patents have been issued disclosing test or isolation valve assemblies used in the inspection of drain systems prior to connection of the systems to sewer lines.
Sullivan U.S. Pat. No. 4,429,568, discloses a closure plug for pressure testing a liquid drain and vent plumbing type system. Sullivan uses a clean-out Y for access to open the plug plate assembly.
Cohen U.S. Pat. No. 1,720,819, discloses a test tee having a tapered gate which closes off a house drain pipe from a drainage system. After the test has been completed, the gate is removed from the test tee and the resulting opening in the tee is closed by a cover plate.
Tagliarnio U.S. Pat. No. 4,542,642, discloses a test tee having a plug which is a removable blocking disk. The blocking disk engages a ledge in the test tee and seals the drainage system. The diaphragm is accessible and removable through an access means.
Roberson U.S. Pat. No. 4,658,861, discloses a pneumatic plug inserted through a clean-out tee to block off a house service line to the main sewer line.
Kennedy U.S. Pat. No. 1,948,220, discloses a test plumbing system using a flap valve which is pivoted at an upper side of the valve seat. The flap valve is held in position by a valve adjusting rod.
Barber U.S. Pat. No. 4,602,504, shows a permanently installed test fitting in which a seal diagram has a frangible, removable portion which may be broken away from the diaphragm and removed to permit service use of the system. A portion of the seal diaphragm remains permanently in the conduit with its edge exposed.
These references relate to the general field of disclosure of this invention but many suffer from the permanent presence of apparatus in the conduit which can catch refuse and cause pluggage.
More recently, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,848,155, 4,936,350, 5,033,510, and 5,163,480 to Huber have disclosed various apparatus for isolating and testing plumbing installations.
None of the above references teaches methods or apparatus adapted for use in water closet or other fitting installations made in poured, permanently set floors, where access to the fittings and to the test or isolation apparatus is impractical or impossible once the fitting has been installed. Nor do any of the references teach or suggest means for isolating a water closet drain system by means of an apparatus which allows selective rotational setting of the water closet stool after the water closet drain has been installed in a permanently set floor. This latter ability is highly advantageous in most construction situations, where minor nuances in alignment and spacing can be critical, particularly in the close, starkly decorated environment typical of water closets.
Thus there exists a need for a water closet fitting adapted for the facilitation of the testing of water closet drain systems, without danger of permanently fouling or obstructing the drain system, and which is easy and convenient to install in poured, permanently set flooring in which access to the fitting and to the drain system will be restricted or prevented. There is a further need for such a system which allows a water closet stool to be set in a selectable rotational position with respect to the installed drain system and the permanent floor in which the drain system is set.